"Now that I'm hurt, I'll need a daily supply of living animals for my recovery, so you must bring me 10 white deer or other living animals on a daily basis!"

"10?!" That was a real shocker for Junior Leopard. The danger was creeping at every moment around the Misty Mountain. God knew what danger was waiting deep in the ancient woods. It was true that Junior Leopard got the secret book of Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique from him, but how could he count on a little boy to be a Level Seven fighter overnight and hunt 10 living animals a day? He was nothing but a 10-year-old kid!

"I know this is not that easy, but I have no time waiting for you. As followers of Dark Sect, we worship no gods. We have the guts to challenge impossible missions and rise from ashes like a phoenix. You are my apprentice now, which means you have to pass the test of Dark Sect. You'd better be killed if you can't do such little things like hunting ten stupid animals!"

Junior Leopard said with a sad face, "I'll give my life to fulfill the missions my master assigned, but should your injury got worse because of me, I can't afford the consequences even if I had a thousand lives!"

"You sure got a sweet tongue, but I knew what I was doing the moment I gave you the mission. It's not possible for you to learn the Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique overnight. It'll take some time, so I'll teach you a mental cultivation method of Lightness Skill. In addition, I'll teach you a set of moves of concealed weapons because I noticed that you have two darts, so I assume that you are good with concealed weapons. Those two techniques and the dagger I gave you are enough for you to finish the mission. Don't bother to come back to me if you still can't do your job well!"

Junior Leopard said silently,
"I wish!"

Then, Xue Wuya gave Junior Leopard a detailed lecture on a set of mental cultivation method of Lightness Skill and concealed weapons technique for two hours. Xue Wuya, whose face turned as pale as death, rushed to the steep valley to heal himself until Junior Leopard said that he had remembered them all.

"Oh, that's it. I have no choice."

Junior Leopard sighed as Xue Wuya walked away. As if accepted his fate, he looked around, walked to a big tree, climbed to the top of the tree with all his hands and feet, and reached the edge of the mountain alongside a branch. There, in the middle of the cliff, hidden a small cave. He climbed into the cave, sighed again. At least he had found a place to protect himself from rough wind and heavy rain now.

It was not a big cave, about 10 feet high and 35 feet deep, enough for Junior Leopard to get some rest. It was damp, the earth covered by a thick layer of moss, but none of these stopped Junior Leopard. He put his butt on the floor, legs crossed, and then started to practice the Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique.

He spent the past year studying the basics of Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique at the Wu's. Although now had access to the whole version of the practice method, he still had to take baby steps, kept practicing the basics, which was way more sophisticated than what he had learned at the Wu's. He benefited a great deal from the precious lessons given by the master of martial arts, Xue Wuya, who taught him the fine parts which a Level Three fighter like Qin Xuanlong could never understand.

Junior Leopard thought,
"Ignis Skill and Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique, which are the same by the very nature, are both the foundations of the fire-property internal strength. The difference lies in the former emphasizes the quality of Internal Qi while the latter emphasizes the quantity, which needs accumulating instead of purifying like needed in the Ignis Skill. Each of the two techniques has its unique strength, which probably means unexpected great effects if the purifying process used in the Ignis Skill were combined with the Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique."
But then he could not help laughing at himself. "What was I thinking? Ignis Skill is not difficult to find, especially for big families like Tian Long Taoism and the Wu's. If the combination is possible, they would have done it already. Who am I to dream about a big pie? I'm not one of those prodigies in fantasy novels who were born with wisdom."

Then, he managed to forget about the idea.

It was not easy to know oneself. He might not have realized it yet but he did know what he was capable of and what he wasn't. Someday in the future, when the same thought came to his mind again, it would help him a lot in his growth.

After several full days of practicing the Internal Qi, all of the moss beneath Junior Leopard's butt was evaporated by his Ignis Internal Qi, and the cave was also drier than before.

Junior Leopard read the secret book of the Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique through after he finished practicing his Internal Qi. The more he read, the more he liked it. The small booklet not only included the whole set of the Blaze Technique, but also Xue Wuya's comments and understanding written at the margin of the pages, which recorded his own thoughts after studying the difference between the Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique and the Bloodfire Gang. Junior Leopard had benefited a lot from it.

Condensing Evil to Gang. That's it. No wonder he could
fly,
because Gang Qi could be used in this way!

After finished roughly scanning the Ignis Mysterious Gang, Junior Leopard had answers to all of his doubts.

Junior Leopard had heard so many rumors about Gang Qi among the Jianghu, which said it meant the lost flying skill and invincibility. In fantasy novels, those Level Seven masters were basically almighty gods, who were too good to be real in Junior Leopard's opinion. What he didn't know was that Level Seven masters could condense the Evil Qi in the universe and blend it into the Internal Qi, to refine a new kind of Qi called Gang Qi, by means of some secret methods. Such Gang Qi, produced by masters of martial arts, was used to practice the lost flying skill, just like the cloud or fog by which the gods and monsters used to fly. The fantasies that Junior Leopard once read about had come true!

The Blood Rainbow that Xue Wuya made was the effect of his Bloodfire Gang. The Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Gang was refined by Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique. Once succeed, the Blood Rainbow could help Xue Wuya to fly in the sky.

Of course, apart from flying, Gang Qi could be used in many other ways.

So, Condensing Evil to Gangg is like gods forging their unique magic weapons. It has the magic effect of attacking, defending, and most importantly, flying. Maybe that's what makes it popular among the Jianghu. It didn't betray its title — the Best of all Special Techniques.

Junior Leopard closed his booklet of Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Technique, heaving a deep sigh.
"Xue Wuya was being awfully generous to me. It's true that he needs me, but he didn't have to offer me such a big favor. The booklet recorded the refining method of the Nine Dragons Heavenly Fire Gang and secrets of his cultivation. If the booklet was leaked and fell into the wrong hands, it is likely that Xue Wuya will be easily killed by his enemy who has found his Achilles heel."

He would be a fool to trust something of vital importance like this to another, but now, it was in Junior Leopard's hands. Unless…

Apparently, instead of recruiting an apprentice, Xue Wuya's real intention is to take advantage of me. The day I no longer have any value to him will be the day I die!

At first, Junior Leopard was taking his chances, hoping that Xue Wuya meant no harm. But now, he was 100 percent sure that Xue Wuya wanted him dead. Such clarity of thoughts put him in a complex mood, which winded up with a helpless sigh. "That's it. Now that Xue Wuya was terribly hurt, he has to stay put until he gets better even if he wanted to kill me. I'd better bring some living animals to him first, in case that he was dissatisfied and decided to take my life right away!"

Junior Leopard stood up on his feet, practiced the mental cultivation method of Lightness Skill taught by Xue Wuya, and jumped out of the cave by the cliff.